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. Author manuscript; available in PMC: 2017 Mar 1.
Published in final edited form as: Wiley Interdiscip Rev Nanomed Nanobiotechnol. 2015 Aug 21;8(2):223–239. doi: 10.1002/wnan.1360

Table 1.

Summary of the nanomaterials used in emerging CTC detection platforms.

Type Chemical
modification
Detection
mechanism
Advantages Ref.
Gold
nanoparticles
Polymeric coating or
linkers combined
with CTC targeting
ligands
Photoacoustic
imaging after in vivo
injection
  • No blood sampling issue

  • Biocompatibility

  • Potential for laser ablation of CTCs

17, 18, 23,
24

Raman reporter
molecule or silver
coating combined
with CTC targeting
ligands
Ultrasensitive
surface-enhanced
Raman scattering
(SERS)
  • Probes for CTC confirmation and quantitative measurement

  • Potential to combine with other CTC capture platform

27-31

Magnetic
nanoparticles
(MNPs)
Polymeric coating or
linkers combined
with CTC targeting
ligands
Isolation of CTCs
from the drawn
blood specimens
  • Ability to separate CTCs using an external magnet

  • Potential to combine with other quantitative probes or CTC capture platforms

1, 35, 38-43

Quantum dots
(QDs)
Polymeric coating or
linkers combined
with QDs and CTC
targeting ligands
Fluorescence-based
identification
  • Stable fluorescence intensity

  • Potential for surface marker-dependent separation

45, 46

Graphene/
graphene
oxides (GO)
Adsorption of dye-
labelled
biomolecules via pi-pi stacking
  • Fluorescence quenching

  • Electrochemical impedance spectroscopy and cyclic voltammetry

  • Increased surface area

  • Excellent thermal, electric conductivity and its optical transmittance

  • Strong mechanical strength

49-51

Dendrimers/
Stimuli-
responsive
polymers
Covalent conjugation
or modification with
CTC specific
antibodies/ligands
Immunostaining
confirmation after
CTC capture on the
platform
  • Increased surface area

  • Potential for post-capture culturing

  • Potential for surface marker-dependent separation

  • High cell viability

54, 58, 59, 61-66